FIRST STEP 
IN READING 



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THE 

FIRST STEPS IN 
READING 



FOR 

The Beginner 

The Rural School Teacher 

The Primary Teacher 

The Intermediate Teacher 
who does not know what 
work preceded hers 

The Mother who wishes to 

TEACH her child TO READ 

Anyone unfamiliar with 
the first steps in 

READING 

By 
LUCY WILLIAMS ^INLEY 

Author of Teaching Beginners to Read 



I918 

UNIVERSITY PUBLISHING COMPANY 
CHICAGO AND LINCOLN 






Copyright, 1918 

The University Publishing Company 

All Rights Reserved 



MAR 12 1918 

©C1.A4940G2 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

The First Lesson 3 

First Work in Writing ........ 5 

Looking Ahead 7 

TheABCMethod 12 

The Phonic Method 12 

The Word Method 13 

The Sentence Method 13 

The Story Method 14 

Methods Compared 15 

The Word and Sentence Method .... 16 

Action Work 17 

Teaching Key Words and Sounds .... 19 

Sounds and Key Words 20 

Teaching Through the Game 22 

Teaching Through Key Words . . . . , 2;^ 

Rapid Sight Drills 24 

Action and Interest 25 

Smoothing Out the Rough Places .... 29 

Teaching Difficult Words 30 

Constant, Thorough Reviews 34 

Getting Good Expression 37 

Expressive Readers 38 

Supplementary Drills 39 

Fluent Readers 41 

iii 



iv Contents 

Independent Readers 41 

Common Sense Phonics 43 

Getting New Words from the Context . . 45 

Accuracy in Spelling 47 

Preparation for the Lesson 47 

Teaching Children How to Study .... 48 

Continuing the Work 50 



INTRODUCTION 

Learning to read is a complex problem. But 
this problem must be solved by every one who 
would have the avenue of approach to the larger 
world. Reading is the key that unlocks the 
storehouse of knowledge. To teach children to 
read is a fine art — an art too little understood 
by many — yes, by most teachers. 

It is the purpose of this monograph to aid 
the mother in the home and the teacher in the 
school to solve that difficult problem, teaching 
children to read. This message goes forth from 
the pen of one who has been a successful teacher 
in the school room and in the home. Out of 
the abundance of her experience and devotion 
to her cause, with sincerity of purpose she gives 
this message to the beginning teacher. The 
author, through definite and concrete sugges- 
tion, shows the teacher how she may make her 
pupils thoughtful, expressive, fluent, and in- 
dependent readers. Not all the work is done 
for the teacher. But sufficient direction is given 
to encourage and to stimulate the teacher who 
is struggling with the problem of teaching 
beginners to read. 



vi Introduction 



The author is not a slave to any particular 

method. She discusses briefly five methods so 

that the teacher may get her bearings. She 

states her aim clearly and tells how the goal 

may be reached. The message is well founded 

pedagogically and psychologically. No unusual 

equipment is required to follow out the plan of 

the author. 

John H. Beveridge 

Superintendent of Instruction 

Omaha, Nebraska. 



FOREWORD 

Any volume published in this day of many 
books should have a reason for being. The 
excuse for this one may be found in Bulletin 623* 
published by the United States Bureau of 
Education. This bulletin yields the interesting 
information that one-third of the teachers who 
enter the rural schools of this country have no 
professional training whatsoever, and of the 
remaining two-thirds, many know nothing of 
primary methods. 

Only the experienced teacher who has 
watched the stumbling progress, the deadened 
interest and the early departure from school 
of the pupils who have' made a bad start can 
realize what this means. The oppressing 
thought of little children deprived of their 
right to a good beginning, and a sincere desire 
to help the inexperienced teachers who so sorely 
need it, prompted the writing of the following 
pages. 

The methods given lay no claim either to 
novelty or originality. On the contrary many 

* Efficiency and Preparation of Rural School Teachers, by Harold W. 
Foght. 

vii 



vili Foreword 



of them have stood the test of time. That 
these letters may reach the one who needs 
them and prove an inspiration and guide till 
the time when she shall form methods and 
standards of her own is the earnest hope with 
which they are sent forth. 

Lucy Williams Tinley. 



Council Bluffs, Iowa. 



THE FIRST STEPS IN 
READING 

My dear Elizabeth: 

I can scarcely express the happiness which 
your letter gave to me. To think that you 
should be called to the very work which I have 
left! I lay my mantle upon your shoulders, 
my dear, and may it be the joy to you that it 
has been to me. 

Your appeal went straight to my heart, for 
two weeks is a painfully inadequate time for 
preparation for your work. I am surprised 
that they assigned you the beginners, but I am 
glad — so glad. Being the first teacher is next 
thing to being the mother. You do not have 
to build on some other person's efforts. For 
your work, good or bad, you alone are respon- 
sible. This lack of preparation will make it 
harder for you, but you will study and I will 
teach you, and we will do our work so well that 
your little ones shall not suffer for it. 

You say that you know absolutely nothing of 
teaching children to read. To quote exactly, 
I believe you said, "I would not even know how 
to teach a child the letter A." Fortunately, 



2 The First Steps in Reading 

my dear, you will not be expected to do any- 
thing so difficult as to teach a child the letter A. 
The letters of the alphabet, so simple to us who 
are familiar with them, are meaningless forms to 
a child. You must surely be familiar with that 
psychological law which leads us to teach all 
new or unknown facts by associating them with 
something already known. This is the one 
fundamental principle in the teaching of read- 
ing, and the more closely you abide by it, the 
more easily obtained and successful will be 
your results. So, instead of using a letter whose 
name means nothing to one who is not familiar 
with its symbolic significance, we choose either 
a simple sentence, such as, I like my doll, or a 
known word, preferably one which suggests 
something pleasant, as bird, flower, mamma, 
apple. Through the mental picture which it 
suggests children learn a word much as we learn 
to know and remember a face. We know that 
the faces which we remember best are the ones 
which held our attention through some par- 
ticular interest, and in just the same way 
interest is the keynote in learning new words. 

It is not wise to give the children books till 
they have learned a few words. The first work 
should be presented from the blackboard. 
Secure a copy of the primer which you are to use 



The First Steps in Reading 3 

and make a list of the first fifty words. These 
are approximately what you will teach before 
taking up the books. 

Perhaps it will be easier if I plan your first 
few lessons for you. These plans will serve as 
guides for the ones which you will compose for 
yourself later on. 

The First Lesson 

For the first lesson provide yourself with a 
large red ball. When the class is ready show 
them the ball. Lead different ones to talk of it 
— its size, color, use. Then proceed something 
after this manner: 

Who can read? What! Is there no one here 
who can read? Too bad! I know some lovely 
games we could play if you could only read. 

You would like to read, wouldn't you? I 
thought so. I believe you could read if I were 
to write something easy enough. I'll just write : 

"See my ball," here on the blackboard. You 
can read "See my ball," can't you? 

Who can read 

See my ball? 

They will all be ready to try it, you may be 
sure, and after several have read the sentence 
add another. 

See my red ball. 



4 The First Steps in Reading 

Now allow the children to read both sentences. 
Then ask who will find the word that says 
ball, the word that says my. Next write ball, 
my, see, and red, in difiPerent places on the 
board and have the children compare and name 
them. They will catch the idea and by the time 
the lesson is over most of the class will be able 
to pick out the four words. 

For this first board work some teachers print 
the words and some use script. It really does 
not matter which you use first for you will soon 
be using both anyway. I use script, as plain 
and round as I can make it. If you print well, 
you can soon have the children recognizing both 
forms of a word, but if you do not print well you 
had better let it alone, as it will only mean teach- 
ing them a third form. 

Of course you understand that you might 
use doll or box or book or any other word instead 
of ball for your first word. I merely chose that 
because it is a familiar and pleasing object and 
the word occurs in most primers. 

Next lesson repeat the first and add the 
sentence : See my blue ball. 

In another lesson, after careful review, add: 
I like my ball. 
I like my red ball. 
I like my blue ball. 



The First Steps in Reading 5 

In a similar manner use flower, leaf, green and 
yellow in your sentences. 

You will find word cards a great help in fixing 
new words in mind. Provide an envelope for 
each child with his name written upon it. 
Rule sheets of manila board into spaces, of a 
size suitable for word cards. (About ^xi>^ 
inches.) In these spaces write the words which 
the children should know, on one side of the 
card in print, on the other side in script. 

These cards may be printed by hand or if 
you have access to a ten cent store, you can get 
a little printing outfit of what is called "Primer 
Type" that will be a great help in this work. 
Cut the cards apart, and put about five copies 
of a word in each envelope. 

At first, children may arrange the words in 
columns upon their desks, having a column for 
each word. Later you will add new words to 
the envelopes and the children may be taught 
to build them into sentences. 

First Work in Writing 
Your first work in writing or rather your 
preparation for it may begin any time. If you 
have never taught a beginner to write, you will 
be surprised that little fingers could be so awk- 
ward. For your first preparatory lesson write 



6 The First Steps in Reading 

some familiar word upon the board, writing it 
very large with letters about six inches high. 
Suppose for instance that your first word is 
nut, which is an easy word for beginners. 
Step back from the board and say, "I have 
written 'nut' upon the board, now I will trace 
it in the air." Trace it several times, then let 
the children trace it with you. Erase it and 
say, "Now we will trace it without the lines 
to guide us." 

Not many will be able to do this the first 
time, but a second trial will give better results. 
Children who merely copy a word pay little atten- 
tion to its form, but if they know that it is soon 
to be erased they look at it with different eyes. 

After tracing a word in the air let them try 
tracing it upon their desks. After they are 
familiar with a few words, play a game by 
standing with your back to the class, tracing a 
word in the air and have them tell what you 
have traced. Soon individual children will be 
able to come before the class and trace words for 
the others to read. 

You will find this tracing a great help in 
fixing in mind the new words of the reading 
lesson. Do not confine your work to separate 
words, but trace the same short sentences that 
you use in reading. 



The First Steps in Reading 7 

After two or three weeks of these exercises 
give the children pencils and paper. They 
now have a definite idea of what writing really 
means, though you will still have to teach them 
the use of the pencil, the size of the word and its 
position on the page. 

This will start you on your way. By the 
time you need more assistance it will be ready 
for you. 

Your loving Aunt. 

LOOKING AHEAD 

My dear Elizabeth: 

I was not surprised at your letter nor the 
avalanche of questions which you poured upon 
me. You feel lost because you cannot see ahead. 
Let me help you. You have started these chil- 
dren on the road to reading. What is the goal 
toward which you are working? You want 
them to be: 

Thoughtful readers 

Expressive readers 

Fluent readers 

Independent readers 
These four points and one which is more than 
all of these, you want your little ones to love 
reading. 



8 The First Steps in Reading 

The greatest thing which the teacher of any- 
subject can give to her pupils is love of that 
subject. If a child reads to please you he will 
read while he is with you; but if you have 
taught him to love reading you have placed in 
his heart the thing which will make him con- 
tinue to read whether you are there or not. No 
doubt you have thought that this pleasure in 
reading would come a little later when your 
children had acquired a vocabulary and were 
able to read long stories, but by that time it 
may be too late. The love of reading should 
begin with the first lesson taught and should 
continue through each lesson which follows. 
Do you see the added responsibility which 
comes with this conception of your work? It 
means that in preparing your lessons you will 
say not only, "I must teach these new words 
to-day," but you will say also, "I must present 
this lesson in such a way that my children will 
love to read these new words." 

Perhaps right here you may meet a common 
stumbling block. People say, "If you make 
things so attractive and sugar-coat all lessons for 
a child doesn't it unfit him for the time in life 
when he is sure to meet disagreeable tasks?" 

I wonder if there is in the world a task so 
disagreeable that there has not been sometime. 



The First Steps in Reading 9 

somewhere, a person who delighted in perform- 
ing it. Not long ago a dainty little college girl 
said to me, "Mother is away this week and I 
am keeping house. You should see my kitchen. 
I just love to scrub!" Her shining eyes spoke 
of the joy of accomplishment — of work well 
done. I thought of the times that I had seen 
that same light in other eyes — the enthusiasm 
which comes from a day in the garden, a house 
put in order, a sidewalk laid, a problem solved. 
Then I thought of the many persons who had 
performed these same tasks as drudgery. The 
joy of accomplishment is the great motive behind 
all successful work. If this is true how can we 
apply this truth to the training of our children? 

Each thing that we teach a child to do and do 
well is a step toward teaching him to enjoy 
performing some other task well. Activity is a 
habit. Inactivity is a habit. The person who 
does not exercise his mind is ever ready to avoid 
those things which call for mental effort. It is 
the student who finds zest in a problem. No 
task but has some disagreeable features, but 
when the satisfaction in the fulfilled purpose is 
great enough, the unpleasantness is forgotten. 

No doubt there are those who have received 
salutary discipline through being compelled to 
perform some distasteful task, but the discipline 



lo The First Steps in Reading 

would have been even greater if the task had 
been self imposed. For instance, we think that 
we do well when we compel a boy to mow the 
lawn, but when we have trained him to that 
frame of mind that he voluntarily mows the 
lawn because he enjoys making the place attrac- 
tive we have really accomplished something. 
The same principle applies to reading. When 
you teach your children to read you do well but 
when you teach them to love to read you do 
infinitely better. 

Let us go back to the four points of your aim. 
You want 

Thoughtful readers 
Expressive readers 
Fluent readers 
Independent readers 

How are you to accomplish this.^ The first 
two points go hand in hand for usually the child 
who has the thought is able to express it. It 
seems to me that that is the important thing 
in the teaching of reading, yet, it is where so 
many fail. The singsong reading — no, not 
reading, word calling — is not so common as it 
once was, yet it is still found all too frequently. 
There is absolutely no excuse for it. Do you see 
how I have emphasized that? Read it again! 
Forget all else I write, but remember this : 



The First Steps in Reading ii 



Your children should read their lessons with 
the same simple, natural expression that you 
would use in reading them. 

Strange, Isn't It, that teachers permit the 
growth of habits In the first months of school 
that It takes years of patient labor to eradicate 
later on? Now smooth that ugly wrinkle out 
of your brow, for this Is not the alarming task 
you are fearing. The road to better reading 
leads us along green pastures and still waters 
where It Is a deHght to travel. You tell me that 
It has been very pleasant — so far, but you are 
afraid of rough places ahead. You will not feel 
that way when you get a broader view of your 
work. In order to do that I want you to know 
something of other methods, and of these I shall 
write you In my next letter. 

Your loving Aunt. 

METHODS COMPARED 

My dear Elizabeth: 

In my last letter I promised to tell you some- 
thing of the methods by which successful teach- 
ers have taught children to read. Among the 
best known are these: 
The Alphabet or A B C Method 
The Phonic Method The Sentence Method 
The Word Method The Story Method 



12 The First Steps in Reading 

The ABC Method 
Of course you know something of the time- 
honored ABC Method but in case your knowl- 
edge may be limited perhaps I had better explain 
that in using this method children are first 
taught to recognize and name the letters of the 
alphabet, then to combine these letters into such 
short words as hen, boy, dog, run or is. When 
a number of words have been learned they are 
used in such brief sentences as, 

I see the cat. 

The cat can run. 

The girl has a doll. 
New words and sentences are gradually added 
and fixed in mind by spelling and reading drills. 

The Phonic Method 
The Phonic Method is quite like the A B C 
Method save that the child is taught to call 
the letter by its sound instead of its name. This 
is thought to be easier because some of the letter 
names (as, for instance h or w) do not suggest 
the letter sounds. Most phonic methods use 
the same synthetic process of word building 
that we find in the A B C Method. After the 
sounds are taught they are combined into such 
phonograms as, am, ap, ade, out, ill, fr, sh, spl, 
and then into words. These words are taught 



The First Steps in Reading 13 

in groups each repeating a familiar phonogram, 
as, 

hat made round 

cat spade found 

fat wade ground 

The words thus taught are then used in 
sentences. 

The Word Method 
The Word Method uses the word as the start- 
ing point. In a first lesson children are taught 
to recognize a word without first learning the 
letters or sounds of which it is composed. Such 
words as boy, play, little, run and jump, are 
taught in this way. When several words have 
been learned they are used in sentences such 
as, 

A boy can run. 
A girl can play. 
New words are taught daily and added to the 
words of the reading lesson. Later, pupils are 
taught to separate words into their sound ele- 
ments and build new words in the same phonic 
group. 

The Sentence Method 

The Sentence Method is like the Word 

Method save that in starting, instead of the 

letter or the word the teacher presents one or 

two short sentences for the first reading lesson, as, 



14 The First Steps in Reading 

I see a flower. 

The flower is blue. 
The sentences are read to the children who 
read them in turn, recognizing them by their 
differences in form. After a number of sen- 
tences have been taught, attention is directed 
to the words and children are taught to recognize 
them at sight. Phonics are developed by word 
analysis as in the Word Method. 

The Story Method 

The Story Method uses the story as the 
starting point. At first the whole story is told 
the children. Then it is divided into sentence 
groups which are written upon the board or 
chart. Through interest in the story and 
repeated readings the children soon memorize 
the sentences and are able to read the story. 
Attention is then directed toward certain words 
to be memorized and later phonics are devel- 
oped in the same way as in the Word Method. 

Children have learned to read and read well 
by every one of these methods. You will wish 
to know which one is best suited to your needs. 
You will see that I have started you with the 
combined Word and Sentence Method. It may 
not be the most perfect method but it is a very 
safe one for an inexperienced teacher. 



The First Steps in Reading ij 

Methods Compared 

You may have wondered, as many another 
person unfamiliar with the ways of teaching has 
wondered, why so many have rejected the 
ABC Method and put another in its place. 
To the uninitiated the letter A would seem the 
simplest and therefore the logical starting point, 
but as I explained previously the letter A is 
not so simple to a child as it is to us. As you 
probably know, each idea that comes to a little 
child is fixed in mind through association with 
an experience. The letters of the alphabet 
being pure symbols do not recall to the mind 
of the child any former experience with which 
they may be associated. You can readily see 
that the spoken word, doll, immediately calls 
up a mental picture of a doll by which the 
printed word may be fixed in mind, but the 
sound A means nothing to a child and so calls 
up no picture. Children can learn these ab- 
stract facts, but they are much more difiicult 
to learn than the facts which are within the 
range of a child's experience. In the days 
when the alphabet method was in general use, 
it was nothing unusual for a child to spend his 
entire first school year acquiring the alphabet. 

The difficulty in starting is not the only 
objection to this method. When we teach a 



i6 The First Steps in Reading 

child new words by putting together the letters 
of which they are composed, we help him to 
form the habit of giving more attention to the 
word form than to the word meaning. This 
is one of the worst faults in beginners and 
causes the stumbling, hesitating reading so hard 
to overcome. Of course a child will have to 
learn the letters and the sounds which they 
represent before he has progressed very far on 
the road to reading, but that should come only 
after he has learned to read words and groups of 
words at a glance. I have taken pains to 
explain this to you in detail because you are apt 
to meet even to-day some patron who will feel 
that modern methods are not so satisfactory as 
the old A B C Method. 

Phonic methods have much the same faults 
as the ABC Method. Phonics have their 
place and a most important one but they should 
be kept in the background till children have 
formed the habit of word recognition. 

The Word and Sentence Method 
The Word and Sentence Method may be at 
fault if children are kept too long on separate 
words or isolated sentences. Kitten is a word 
which attracts most children. The Kitten is 
gray is a sentence which may hold the attention 



The First Steps in Reading 17 

for a time, but genuine interest is not awakened 
till we reach the sentence group, as. 

This is Kitty Gray. 

Kitty Gray runs away. 

I have a bell. 

The bell says, '^ Tinkle, tinkle." 

The bell is for Kitty Gray. 
The Story Method is excellent in that it 
utilizes this appeal of the sentence group, but 
even the simplest story will require the use of 
more new words than it is possible for a child 
to master in two or three lessons and he is apt 
to tire of the story before the vocabulary is 
established. So you see there are pitfalls in all 
methods but we will try to avoid them. Now 
I know that you want a few definite directions 
for going on with your work. 

You say that you have taught' sixteen words. 
You might go on indefinitely in the same 
manner, but a new way of presenting the 
lesson stirs up interest and so enables children 
to acquire new words with greater rapidity and 
ease. 

Action Work 
One of the best means at this time is through 
action work or written commands. So far your 
children have been taught to look and say. 
Now they will learn to look and do. 



i8 The First Steps in Reading 

Aside from the interest that it creates this 
work is valuable in helping a child to keep the 
right attitude toward his reading material — 
that is, that each line has a personal message 
to him. 

Write upon the board the single word, clap. 
Tell the children that you are going to use this 
means of telling them what to do. Then write 
stop and say, "This is 'stop' and tells you 
when to stop clapping." Alternate the written 
commands clap and stop, having the children 
follow. Write rapidly and erase as soon as the 
children see what you have written. In other 
lessons use such words as run, jump, skip, hop, 
tap and play. Children may be taught to do 
these things lightly and quietly, in a way that 
will not disturb the others. You will find these 
lessons bristling with interest and children will 
get new words given in this way very rapidly. 
It is a game to them, and whenever you can call 
the Spirit of Play to your assistance you will 
find her a valuable ally. 

I have not time for more now but will write 
you in a very few days for it is high time that your 
little people should be starting on their phonics. 

Your loving Aunt. 



The First Steps in Reading 19 



TEACHING KEY WORDS AND 
SOUNDS 
My dear Elizabeth: 

Thoughtful readers 

Expressive readers 

Fluent readers 

Independent readers 
You see, I am not going to let you forget your 
aims and purposes. I have not yet had time to 
explain to you just how you are to accomplish 
it; I will come to that presently. In the mean- 
time I must give you more definite instruction 
for the work at hand. 

So far, your children have had to depend upon 

you for each new word. They will have to do 

this until they learn that letters are symbols of 

certain sounds which ^combine to form the 

spoken word. They do not need to know the 

names of the letters in order to do that. It is 

easier to teach the sound alone. There are two 

commonly used methods of doing this. As I 

have already explained, the letter alone means 

nothing to a child and he will have difficulty in 

remembering it unless it is associated with 

something known. One way is to compare each 

sound to some sound with which the child is 

already familiar, as T to the tick of a watch, 

M to the hum of a top. 



20 The First Steps in Reading 

Another way is to recognize the letter by- 
associating it with some known word in which it 
is the initial letter. I have used both methods 
and both are good. However, in the first in- 
stance the child remembers the sound by asso- 
ciating it with a former experience. In the 
second instance he remembers the sound by 
associating it with another symbol. I find that 
children retain longer those memories which come 
to them through association with experience. 
So, as far as possible, I teach the sounds by com- 
paring them to some sound with which the chil- 
dren are familiar. When I know of no familiar 
sound that is like the sound of the letter I wish 
to teach, I use a key word. 

Sounds and Key Words 
The following list of sounds and key words 
may prove helpful to you. 
By sounds : 

c — sound of choking 

f — cross cat 

g — frog 

h — panting dog 

m — cow 

o — mother warning Baby 

r — growl of dog 

s — steam from engine 



The First Steps in Reading 21 

t — tick of clock 
V — hum of trolley wire 
w — wind 
z — hum of bee 

By words : 

b — baby 
d — dog 
a — apple 

e — ^gg 

i — ink 
u — up 

j — jump 
k — kitty 

1 — little 
n — no 

P — pig 
q — quick 

X — box 

y — yes 

These lessons should be brief and spirited. 
It is the vivid impression which counts. Sup- 
pose that you wish to teach the sound of the 
letter t. It is not enough to say, "This is the 
letter which has the same sound as the clock." 
Interest should first be aroused through some 
little game or story about the sound. 



22 The First Steps in Reading 

Teaching Through the Game 

You may say for Instance, 

"Let's have a little game. This is the 'still' 
game. We will fold our hands and sit so still 
that there won't be a sound. No, I heard 
some one move. Try again. There! That was 
fine. But do you know when you were all 
sitting with folded hands there was something 
in this room that would not be still ? I heard it 
making its little sound. Listen! There it is! 
Do you hear it? Of course you do. It is the 
clock saying T, T, T, such a soft pretty little 
sound! Let's play that we are little clocks and 
see how we would sound all ticking together — 
T, T, T, T, T. That's fine! I'm sure that you 
are not babies if you can tick away like that. 
I even believe you are almost old enough to 
learn the same sound which the clock says. 
Shall I try it here on the board? First the big 
Mother one stands up straight like this T, t — 
right beside her is her little child and they both 
say T, T, like the clock. Now, let's see who can 
point to the letter and make its sound, T, T, T. 
Of course, when you are older you will learn to 
draw a clock face like this, so round with its two 
hands and the letter printed right beside it. 
What! You think you can do it now? Well, 
you may try and when you get it all done I'm 



The First Steps in Reading 23 

going to catch you In this game because you 
won't remember what it says." 

It is the game in this which makes it enjoy- 
able and helps to fix it in mind. Several times 
during the day point to the letter and say, 
"What! you still remember? Well, I'm sure I 
shall catch you to-morrow!" 

Of course, you will not try to use my words. 
This is merely an example to show you how you 
can associate some little play with the sound in 
order that the impression may be vivid and 
lasting. 

Teaching Through Key Words 
When teaching a sound by means of a key 
word, first be certain that the word is one which 
is perfectly familiar. Do not use the word which 
I have suggested when you can find a better 
one of your own. In choosing your key words 
be sure to select those which have been easy, as 
baby or jump. These call up a definite word 
picture while such words as but and just are 
harder and do not make good key words. 

Suppose that you wish to teach the sound of 
the letter B. Write the familiar word, baby, 
upon the board and have children pronounce it 
with you. Then say, "We will have a hunting 
game to-day. We are going to hunt for the 



24 The First Steps in Reading 

sound of the first letter in this little word. See ! 
I shall write it here upon the board all by itself. 
Who can tell me what it says? No one? Too 
bad! It is hiding away in this little word and 
we shall have to find it. Let's all say the word 
just as slowly as we can. "B-a-b-y." Did 
you feel the way that your lips came together 
just then? Try it again. Why, you are fine 
hunters! That little sound cannot hide away 
from you much longer. Say it again! Has 
some one found it now? That's it! B-B-B. 
Now that we have found it we won't let it hide 
away again. I will write it here upon the board 
— the big Mother and the little baby one. 
Right above it I will write the word, baby, and 
if you should forget the sound you will say the 
word, baby, and that will help you to find it 
again." 

Rapid Sight Drills 
When you have taught several sounds make 
yourself a set of cards about 6xio inches out of 
manila board. With dark crayon or a heavy 
drawing pencil write your key word with its 
letter upon one of these. These cards will be a 
help in giving rapid sight drills and when not in 
use should be placed about the room where 
children may refer to them. These phonic 
drills should not be work at all, just a happy 



The First Steps in Reading 25 

playtime. Never have drills long — five or ten 
minutes is ample time. Come to the drill with a 
definite purpose, know what you expect to 
accomplish, but let the children feel that it is 
play. You can work these little drills in at all 
sorts of odd moments, after a study period, when 
they need a little change or while they are wait- 
ing for others to get ready or a gong to sound. 

Action and Interest 
I am sure that you enjoy your action work. 
Let me give you a little more. So far you 
have used only verbs but now you will find these 
exercises helpful in teaching various words. 
Bring in a small basket of objects whose corre- 
sponding nouns are among the words of your 
primer. For instance, a red ball, a blue ball, 
some artificial flowers and leaves (unless you 
have the fresh ones), a doll, a top, a book. Now 
you are ready for a fine lesson. 
Write directions as: 

Get a ball. 

Get a blue ball. 

Get a red ball. 

Get a doll. 

Get a red flower, 
and let the children perform them. After per- 
forming the act let a child read his sentence 



26 The First Steps in Reading 

from the board. Little by little you may add 
the children's names to these exercises, as: 

Get a ball, Mary. 
' Get a book, John. 

Let each child have one of the manila cards 
with his name written upon it to keep on his 
desk. These may be outlined with corn or 
other small objects, or you may show a child 
how to trace the outline with the index finger 
and then turn the card over and see how much 
of the name he can trace without the lines to 
guide him. In a very short time each child will 
be able to recognize his own name. 

You ask me about teaching The and A so 
that the .children will read them naturally and 
not stumble over them. The best thing to do 
with those troublesome little words is to ignore 
them. The less attention paid to them, the less 
trouble you will have. Children are not apt 
to mention them if you do not. Never put them 
on the board excepting in a sentence. Then 
when you read them to the children glide over 
them as if your whole thought was centered on 
the word following. Do you remember when 
primers were arranged, — 

Cat. 

A cat. 

A fat cat. 



The First Steps in Reading 27 

Is It any wonder that children read, — 

I — see — a — cat, 
and felt that they had mastered the lesson? 

But to go on with the action lessons. Just 
a few more suggestions and I am sure that you 
will be able to compose your own lessons. Let 
your list of words from the primer be your guide, 
though when you need them to add interest to 
your lesson it is all right to introduce a few 
others. As your vocabulary increases you will 
use such sentences as: 

Give me a ball. 

Get the ball, May. 

Give it to John. 

Find a little doll. 

Give it to Helen. 

Sing to the doll, Helen. 

Run to the door, Phil. 

Run back to me. 
Later you will be able to have lessons of this type : 

I am thinking of something. 

It is brown. 

It has two brown eyes. 

It is pretty. 

It has four feet. 

It can run and jump and play. 

It likes to bark. 

What is it? 



28 The First Steps in Reading 

Children love this kind of a lesson and are 
breathless with eager interest to see who can 
guess the riddle. 

Another pleasing exercise is to tell a little 
story bringing in familiar words as: 
Once I had a little doll. 
Her name was Mary. 
Her eyes were blue. 
Her hair was yellow. 

All but the words in black type are spoken. 
These latter being known to the class are not 
spoken but written upon the board as the story 
proceeds. 

I think you now have enough suggestions on 
action work to carry you past the time when it 
will be of much service to you. 

In all of this it is the interest aroused which 
will determine the quality of your work. We 
talk of teaching our children to concentrate. It 
is my conviction that voluntary concentration 
for any length of time is practically impossible 
for children. The only true concentration is 
involuntary and its source is interest. The 
appeal of the lesson to child nature is the secret 
of progress in primary reading. "Appetite 
before food" is as true of the mind as it is of the 
body, and the child who learns most is the one 
whose lessons have been made so attractive that 



The First Steps in Reading 29 

he reaches for them with loving eagerness, — 
that he thinks of them and talks of them not 
only in class time but at home, at play, or 
wherever he may be. Word-getting is neces- 
sary, the mechanics of reading are of course 
most important, but do not become so engrossed 
with these minor details that you neglect to 
develop in your children an appreciation of the 
joy that awaits them in the land of books. 

Your loving Aunt. 

SMOOTHING OUT THE ROUGH 
PLACES 

My dear Elizabeth: 

What! My little girl in the dumps! Don't 
you know that a fit of the blues is a luxury which 
you should have flung to the winds when you 
entered upon your career as a teacher? So you 
are "a failure," your children "do not go ahead 
fast enough" and they "do not remember any- 
thing." Well, what a dreadful state of affairs! 
It is a wonder that the parents have not de- 
manded your resignation. 

Come out and enjoy the sunshine. Those 
clouds are not worth while. You will learn that 
these beginners are odd little people. 

They seem to know a thing so well to-day and 
by to-morrow one would think that they had 



30 The First Steps in Reading 

never heard of it. The interesting part of it is 
that the time when the principal or some parent 
drops in to see what kind of work you are doing 
is the moment they choose to display this pecu- 
liar blankness. But don't you believe it. They 
have not really forgotten. It is stored away 
somewhere in their little heads as another drill 
or two will show. 

Teaching Difficult Words 
Probably you have been at fault too. When- 
ever your children have a period of forgetfulness 
pay a little more attention to reviews. Of 
course you keep a list of all words learned and 
go over it in rapid sight drill at least once every 
day. There are certain words that are always 
hard for children to remember, — words like 
with, this, them, there, which do not call up any 
definite word picture. These are much better 
taught in sentences in relation with other words. 
Suppose, for instance, that you want to teach 
with. Prepare such an exercise as this: 

Come with me. 

Run with me. 

Play with me. 

Play with John. 

Run with John. 

Hop with Mary. 



The First Steps in Reading 31 

Sing with Mary. 

Play with a doll. 

Play with a ball. 
Instead of being acted out this exercise may be 
read through rapidly by the class and by in- 
dividuals. It will be worth much more than 
any amount of drill on with alone. For this 
try this exercise: 

This is my ball. 

It is red. 

This is your ball. 

It is yellow. 

This is John's ball. 

It is green. 

This is Phil's ball. 

It is blue. 
Perhaps, like many beginners, you feel that 
long words are hard words. Many of these 
would be confusing, no doubt, but a few are 
a delight. Some day just try the children on 
automobile and see how they take to it. Say, 
for instance, "I had a new word this morning 
but it is too hard. I can't give it to you. Too 
bad! I'll have to think of something easy. 
I do wish that you could learn this hard word 
but it is so long. Just see how long it is (writ- 
ing). There! Automobile — you can't re- 
member that! What! you do? Well, you 



32 The First Steps in Reading 

can't remember it in sentences anyway. " 
Write: 

See my automobife. 

See my red automobile. 
Three minutes drill and you have added a new 
word to your list and one which will not be 
forgotten. 

If you feel that your children do not get on 
rapidly enough it may be that you are not using 
every moment to the best advantage. It is so 
easy to waste time in school through lack of 
preparation. Every night after school you 
should plan carefully each period of the next 
day's work. In that quiet time by yourself 
you think of things that would never come to 
you in the busy schoolroom. Do not try to 
carry them in your mind. Have a generous 
notebook and write your plans in detail. 'Even 
the sentences which you wish to use as rapid 
sight work may be written on a slip of paper 
and held in your hand at recitation time. They 
will be better in their composition and more 
satisfactory in their results if composed before, 
and you will not be taking the precious moments 
of the recitation thinking what to write next. 
Of course, if something better comes to your 
mind the next morning you are always free to 
use it. 



The First Steps in Reading 33 

Once more let me take you back to the first 
point in our aim, — 

Thoughtful Readers 
If one point could be more important than the 
rest it is this one. To gain the thought from the 
printed page is the object of reading. We know- 
that many lessons are taught when this is not 
accomplished at all and such lessons are worse 
than failures. The perfect naming of words is 
worthless if those words do not convey the 
thought intended. In the anxiety to acquire 
new words it is very easy to let children get this 
wrong attitude toward their reading material. 
One of the best ways of avoiding this is through 
silent reading. Use much of this every day. 
For instance, write upon the board, using only 
words that the children know, such sentences 
as these: 

Do you like me.^* 

I like you. 
Look questioningly at the children, but do not 
say a word. You can tell from the responsive 
smile which ones have the thought. Erase the 
sentences and write others. As soon as the 
vocabulary permits, write a very simple little 
lesson of six or seven related sentences. Have 
them concealed behind a curtain. Remove the 
curtain and without a word give the children a 



34 The First Steps in Reading 

smile or a nod through which they may under- 
stand that this little lesson is now theirs to 
enjoy. Point slowly along each line watching 
their faces to be sure that they are following. 
When they have finished replace the curtain 
and turn to something else. 

Children love these lessons and an occasional 
bright picture pasted lightly to the board adds 
greatly to the interest. Let them feel that 
behind the curtain is a little treat for them. 

Constant, Thorough Reviews 

Word-getting should never be the end and 
aim of the reading lesson, yet nothing is so 
detrimental to good reading as a lot of half 
learned words. I cannot tell you too often 
that reviews must be constant and thorough. 
You will have to use your ingenuity to keep 
them varied and snappy, otherwise the children 
may lose interest. Here are a few suggestions : 

Write a list of words upon the board. 

Have the class read it in concert. 

Have the boys read it. 

Have the girls read it. 

Have individuals read it. 

Or have words written on a ladder. 

See who can climb the ladder naming the 
words. 



The First Steps in Reading 35 

Sometimes play there is a fire and let them 
race up the ladder and down again. 

Have many words written on the board. 
Let each child name and erase three. 

Other devices will come to you as you work. 
There are devices, too, which, outside of the 
regular lesson, help to increase the vocabulary. 

Try this: Bring into the schoolroom some 
object or picture of an object in which the 
children will be interested. Place it in some 
conspicuous place in the room and attach to it 
a large card bearing its name. Say nothing of 
it, but when the children come in you will see 
by their knowing smiles that they appreciate 
it. After a day or two try the word in your 
reading lesson and you will find that it is 
known. 

Suppose for instance that some afternoon the 
children tumble in, wild with excitement over 
an organ grinder and monkey that have ap- 
peared in the neighborhood. Do not be so tied 
to your program that you cannot take advantage 
of any circumstance which may arise. Eyes are 
shining and hands waving in their eager desire to 
tell you all about it. What do you do? Send 
them to their books ? Insist upon your customary 
quiet.? Draw down the curtains for fear the 
children may catch another glimpse of the 



36 The First Steps in Reading 

tiresome monkey? I am afraid that some 
teachers might feel that such was their duty, 
but you will find in this your golden oppor- 
tunity. 

Interest, your Royal Helper, has come un- 
bidden to your door this day. Instead of 
closing it in her face, draw her in and let her do 
your work for you. How easy it is to go 
seeking her in byways, not seeing that all of the 
time she is in our midst. 

Perhaps you will have a guessing lesson, as, 

I am thinking of something. 

It is little. 

It is brown. 

It has a red cap. 
Or you may prefer. 

What do you think I saw? 

A little brown monkey. 
You may be able to work in the very words in- 
tended for this lesson, but do not sacrifice your 
story for that. Watch your children, know 
what they are thinking about. You will find 
it far better to bring your work down to their 
interests wherever that is possible, than to 
expect them always to rise to yours. 

Another great help is the use of simple 
rhymes — Mother Goose Jingles or kinder- 
garten songs. 



The First Steps in Reading 37 

Write an easy one upon the board. Read 
it over and over to the children. Let them go 
over it with you. Leave it upon the board for a 
week or more. Children love these little verses 
and they gain new words from them with 
astonishing rapidity. 

You will soon take up your books and before 
you do that it will be wise to make the change 
from script to print. The printing outfits 
with letters one inch high are not expensive. 
If you have one get a dozen or more sheets of 
manila board 24x30 inches. On these print 
very simple lessons of familiar words. If you 
haven't the outfit print these lessons upon the 
blackboard. The change from script to print 
is not a hard one and your little ones are nearing 
the happy day when each child may have his 
first book. 

Your loving Aunt. 



GETTING GOOD EXPRESSION 

My dear Elizabeth: 

In my last letter I endeavored to show you 
two ways of accomplishing your first aim, 
Thoughtful Readers : 
Silent reading. 
Thorough word drills. 



38 The First Steps in Reading 

Now we will turn to the second point in 
your aim: 

Expressive Readers 

I have already mentioned the habit of word 
calling, — how unnecessary it was and how diffi- 
cult to overcome once the habit was formed. 

The best way to avoid this is by never allow- 
ing a child to express a thought until he has it 
in his mind: that is, have him read through a 
sentence silently before he reads it aloud. How 
do you and I read with good expression.? We 
look ahead and while our lips are saying one 
thing our eyes are reading another and our 
minds adjusting the meaning and guiding our 
voices to the proper inflection. Think of ex- 
pecting a complicated operation like that of 
beginners! They simply cannot do it, and 
unless we want the halt between the words, we 
had better have it come between the sentences. 

Another great help to better expression is 
good reading material. Yes, I know, your 
primers are not very good. They are too hard 
in the beginning, but you can do much to over- 
come that. If your books are hard and take 
up new words too rapidly it simply means that 
you will have to put more lessons upon the 
board. Whenever you can, use sentences bring- 



The First Steps in Reading 39 

ing out contrast; it will help the expression. 
For instance, instead of: 

This is my ball. 

It is blue. 

I can play with it. 

Use: 

My ball is blue. 
Your ball is red. 
Helen's ball is not red. 
It is yellow. 

Supplementary Drills 

Supplement the work in the books by little 
lessons of your own written upon sheets of heavy 
paper. These may be saved and occasionally 
passed for sight reading. They should be easier 
than the regular lesson, and if you put into them 
sentences which appeal to the child's emotions, 
you will find them a great aid to expression. 
Here are a few examples : 

How it rains! 

How the wind blows ! 

Now we must stay in the house. 

Get your books, boys ! 

Get your books, girls! 

We will play school. 



40 The First Steps in Reading 

Do you know me? 

Do you know my name? 

I am Winifred. 

I am Ruth's little doll. 

Ruth! Ruth! 

Come and get me. 

Please, please do! 

I want to go to sleep. 

Dear little baby! 

I love you. 

I see your soft little hands. 

I see your pretty blue eyes. 

Shall I rock you, Baby dear? 

Shall I sing you to sleep ? 

Another excellent aid to expression is the dia- 
logue. You can compose these even with a 
very limited vocabulary. 

Closely allied to this is the dramatizing of 
familiar rhymes. Mother Goose rhymes are 
full of possibilities. The children will love to 
repeat and act out Miss Muifet, Boy Blue, and 
Jack and Jill. And afterwards they will be 
doubly interested in lessons about their play. 

The next point in our aim is: 



The First Steps in Reading 41 

Fluent Readers 

I have written to you of the halt between the 
words and the halt between the lines. I suppose 
you would like to know when children are to 
learn to read without either of them. 

The first means is the study or re-reading of 
the lesson till it is so familiar that there need not 
be a halt anywhere. 

Another help is in the grouping of sentences. 
It is easier for a child to read eight sentences 
grouped in twos, than eight sentences equal 
spaces apart. 

Another help to fluency is the habit of 
phrasing. From the first there are certain sets 
of words which should be seen and read as one, 
for instance such words as: 

By and by 

She said 

A little boy 

One by one 

On the floor 

The last point in your aim is: 

Independent Readers 

I imagine that you are already looking for- 
ward to the time when your children will be able 
to sound out new words for themselves instead 



42 The First Steps in Reading 

of depending upon you. This, as you know, is 
to be accomplished through the study of phonics 
and spelling, of which I will write you more in 
my next letter. I hope that this brief summary 
will give you a clear view of your work — that 
which is past and that which is before you. 

Thoughtful Readers 
Silent reading 
Thorough word drills 

Expressive Readers 
Reading sentence before expressing 
Goodjreading'matter with contrasting sentences 
Dialogues 
Dramatization 

Fluent Readers 
Study of lesson 
Grouping of sentences 
Phrasing 

Independent Readers 
Phonics 
Spelling 

Among the books in your building there may 
be some old manuals such as accompany differ- 
ent series of readers. You will find any of them 



The First Steps in Reading 43 



well worth reading. There is something to take 
and something to leave in each one of them. 

If you ever read or think of anything different 
from the way that I have told you which appeals 
to you as helpful do not hesitate to try it. 
Compare the two methods and use whichever 
seems best to you. Any method which aids in 
accomplishing the aim which I have set before 
you cannot be far wrong. 

Your loving Aunt. 



COMMON SENSE PHONICS 

My dear Elizabeth: 

Now comes the miracle, for out of this tiny 
pygmy which you have started in teaching the 
elementary sounds, is to grow the giant who will 
carry the burden of new words for you. 

Let this be your rule: 

Each day teach something new in phonics. 
Each day drill upon all that you have previous- 
ly taught. 

As soon as a sound has been learned place its 
corresponding letter in a permanent place on 
the blackboard. Your work with words will 
be accomplished principally in three ways: 



44 The First Steps in Reading 

Comparison of words 
Analysis of words 
Word building 

Your children are familiar with the consonant 
sounds and I am sure that you have had them 
discover these sounds in new words whenever 
the opportunity presented. A very easy lesson 
is the addition of s to form the plural, as boy, 
boys. 

Now your children are ready to compare words 
having the same endings. Suppose that they 
have had the word tell. Write it upon the 
board, and under it write bell, sounding each 
very slowly and leading the children to see that 
the same ending gives the same sound. Do the 
same with other words, always using a familiar 
word to teach one that is new. 

Soon you will be able to put "families" of 
words upon the board for children to sound, as: 

man will 

Dan hill 

Fan mill 

pan fill 

At this time, too, children may be taught to 
blend two consonants together, as gl in glad or fr 
in Frank. 

Keep a list containing one word from each 



The First Steps in Reading 45 

new family learned and have your children go 
over it daily. 

For review work and drill, arrange and copy 
upon the board such exercises as this: 



at an 


bag 


bad 


and 


back 


fat can 


rag 


had 


hand 


Jack 


mat man 


wag 


mad 


sand 


pack 


rat pan 


drag 


glad 


grand 


black 


sat Dan 


flag 


sad 


stand 


sack 


Arrange 


similar 


exercises, 


using 


the other 



short vowels, and later the long vowels. 

Arrange and copy such exercises as this: 

rat sad stop 

ran sat still 

rag sang stand 

rack sand stem 

rang sack stick 
These are good also: 

an at pan tap 

en et pen tell 

in it pin tick 

on ot pop top 

un ut pug tub 

Getting New Words from the Context 
I do not consider it wise to give many rules in 
the first year's work. However, after drill 
upon such endings as at, ate ; in, ine ; op, ope ; it 



46 The First Steps in Reading 

is well to show the children that the final e 
usually indicates a long vowel. A child who is in 
the habit of reading for the thought will deter- 
mine new words from the context and he should 
be encouraged to do this whenever possible. 
Often the beginning sound is all that he needs 
to carry him on, and such a child will read much 
more intelligently than the child whose mind is 
taken up with the application of phonic rules. 

You will find one difficulty with many. Do 
not be discouraged if even after they have had 
quite a little phonic drill and are able to do very 
good work while you are there pointing it out 
from the board, they seem disinclined to use 
that knowledge when alone. You will have to 
be firm in refusing to tell them any word which 
they are able to sound for themselves. On the 
other hand, if a word is hard to sound, as 
pigeons or said and a child has forgotten, tell 
it promptly. Do not waste time with a lot of 
questions which may lead him to guess it. 

After children are perfectly familiar with the 
sounds of the letters they are ready to learn 
their names. These they may acquire in a very 
short time. As you write words or sentences 
spell each one as if to yourself. After you have 
done this for several days, have children do it 
with you. Later write and print the alphabet 



The First Steps in Reading 47 



upon the board and teach the little song, 
"A, B, C," pointing to each letter as you name 
it. In a very short time the children will know 
the letters and you will be able to add oral 
spelling to your list of duties. 

Accuracy in Spelling 
Thus far you have used the visual sense. 
Now let them use the auditory sense and the 
muscular sense as well. In written work use 
the words in sentences as much as possible. 
Then in rapid drill have children spell words 
orally both in concert and individually. There 
is only one aim in spelling, and that is absolute 
accuracy. Keep a list of words and by frequent 
reviews, be sure that each child knows them. 
Better fifty words learned perfectly than five 
hundred which are only guessed at. 

Let me give you a few suggestions for con- 
ducting your reading lessons. If it is possible, 
make two divisions of your class, having at 
least two-thirds of your pupils in the strongest 
division. This will give you the time for 
individual work with the ones who need it most. 

Preparation for the: Lesson 
Precede the reading with a discussion of the 
lesson. Suppose for instance that your lesson 
is about the rainbow. Of course your children 



48 The First Steps in Reading 

have all seen a rainbow and will want to tell the 
circumstances under which it came. After 
this you will question them regarding the cause 
and nature of the rainbow, and if you have 
been careful in your preparation, you will have 
a prism upon your desk ready to place in the 
sunlight. Then you will recall for the children 
some of the lovely things which our poets have 
said of the rainbow. Perhaps there will not 
be time for it just now, but you can at least 
promise the story of the first rainbow and God's 
promise to Noah for the next story hour. 

Teaching Children How to Study 
With all of this preparation I am sure that it 
will be an eager little class of children turning 
to their books to find what more can be learned 
upon this fascinating subject. If possible let 
all read the lesson silently. At first do not pay 
any attention to word difficulties but let several 
tell what they have read. Then if some failed 
to read it, find out why and place the difficult 
words upon the board for pronunciation. Once 
again let all read the lesson silently, and at 
last you are ready for your oral reading. 

This, of course, takes time but if you are 
careful to use it wisely and hold children to the 
subject, it is time well spent. A child who 



The f irst Steps in Reading 49 

approaches his lesson in this way will realize 
that his object is to enjoy and understand what 
the page has to tell him and not merely to show 
how well he can pronounce the words. Oral 
reading is secondary but it is important too, and 
you should spare no pains to have children 
express themselves naturally and freely. They 
are natural imitators so it is a good plan to read 
to them frequently, both their own lessons and 
short stories from other books. 

From the first try to have children see the 
lessons as a united whole. Do not form the 
habit of calling a sentence a "story." As the 
lessons become longer it will not be possible for 
each child to read the whole lesson. The cus- 
tom of "reading around" has been criticised 
but used occasionally it awakens interest. 

Sometimes let the child who reads pass to the 
front and face the class. A very little concert 
reading is not a bad thing and lends variety. 
Or let the boys read one paragraph and the girls 
the next. 

An occasional volunteer lesson is interesting. 
Let the class stand. Any child may read and 
be seated after his paragraph. Others follow in 
the same way till all have read. Or let the child 
who reads choose the one who is to follow him. 

Your loving Aunt. 



50 The First Steps in Reading 

CONTINUING THE WORK 

My dear Elizabeth: 

I cannot tell you how I have enjoyed your 
bright, happy letters. I know that you have 
found your calling for the joy of your work 
overrides its fatigue. You must be tired, too. 
Your year has not been all play for no teacher 
ever plants a thought in the heart of another 
without giving with it some part of her vital 
self. 

There is one thing more for you to do in order 
that the next teacher may build intelligently 
upon the work which you have done. You 
plan to be back there next year but a long 
summer intervenes and we never know what 
may happen, so it is better to leave a careful 
record of the work that you have been over. 
Make a list of the books that the children have 
read, the phonic drills and the words that they 
can spell. 

Suggest that the first work in the fall be the 
re-reading of the last book that they read in the 
spring. They will go ahead stronger for the 
review. 

You tell me that excepting two who have been 
out a great deal and will have to take the work 
over your children all read well. Think what 



The First Steps in Reading 51 

this means! You have done your part and your 
children are well on their way toward high 
school. Do you realize the tremendous im- 
portance of good reading and the part that it 
plays in each person's life? Go into the third 
and fourth grades and you will nearly always 
find two or three who cannot read. They are 
older than the rest for they have been held back 
year after year because of poor reading. What 
is the matter.^ It is not because they could not 
learn, for they are not always dull children. 
Where was the fault.'' It must have been back 
there in the beginning somewhere for they do 
not read as well as a child should read on leaving 
the first grade. What happens.^ They hate 
school. They hate everything that pertains to 
books, and just as soon as it is possible they drop 
out of school and join the ranks of the illiterate 
— the unenlightened. 

You have taught forty little children to read 
well. Probably most of them would have 
learned to read sooner or later even if your work 
had been very poor, but I do not doubt that 
there are several of these same children to 
whom the difference between a wrong start and 
a right start means the difference between 
illiterate strugglers and intelligent, useful citi- 
zens. Think of the responsibility! Think too 



52 The First Steps in Reading 

of the joy of rendering such a service not only 
to the individual child but to the whole common- 
wealth! Let me tell you a story. It is true. 
I do not doubt that there are many similar cases 
of which we never hear. 

A number of years ago there was a little family 
of good substantial people. The father worked 
hard and paid his bills, and the mother stayed 
at home and took care of her children. From 
the first, little Mary had troubles in school. I 
do not know why. It was not that she was 
dull. Far from it, and her first teacher was a 
bright and clever woman. At any rate, Mary 
could not learn to read. She took her book 
home and in the evenings her older brothers 
helped her as best they could. While her 
mother ironed little frocks or rolled out biscuits, 
Mary sat beside her and pored over her reading 
lesson. She struggled through the second and 
third grades. She stumbled through the fourth. 
She hated school and longed for the day when its 
summoning call would no longer be for her. 
It was a discouraged, unhappy child who 
entered the fifth grade under the care of Miss 
Andrews — a young lady who loved both chil- 
dren and good literature. 

It is Mary's side of the story that I am telling 
so I cannot say what possibilities the teacher 



The First Steps in Reading 53 

saw in the little girl that the other teachers had 
not seen. She made a companion of her, found 
excuses to keep her after school and told her 
stories, stories, stories! When the time was 
ripe she told her the story of Evangeline and 
they read it together. It was Mary's first book. 
Before that it had been words — nothing but 
words. Over and over she read the beautiful 
story whose romance and tender pathos appealed 
to the heart of the child. Other books followed 
and Mary entered the sixth grade one of the 
best of her class. 

Miss Andrews was called elsewhere, but her 
work went on. From that time Mary went 
steadily forward. She finished high school and 
graduated from college first in her class. She is 
to-day a woman honored in her profession and 
beloved by all who know her. Her influence is 
far reaching and hundreds of people look to her 
with gratitude for the inspiration and help which 
she has been to them. 

Of course there was the material to work on, 
and the good home and faithful mother back of 
it all, yet it took the teacher to forge the link 
which bound the chain together. Somewhere 
in the world there is one who does not know all 
this — yet it came about because she stood ready 
at the right moment to teach something that 



54 The First Steps in Reading 

did not appear in the course of study, because 
she was willing to give her time and thought to 
work that was not named in the contract. In 
other words because she was a Teacher. 
God bless you, dear, in your chosen work. 

Your loving Aunt. 



-r^'-9^f\'*rs'^n^lirSSt£±iSit 



019 843 675 6 



